"Despite increasing use of technology in many of these programs to deliver at least some content, costs continue to rise partly due to the increasing popularity of residencies, either on-campus or in different international locales," writes Poets & Quants founder John Byrne.

Topping the list is Wharton's EMBA program, which costs $181,500 for students, who enroll at either the the University of Pennsylvania's home campus in Philadelphia or its satellite campus in downtown San Francisco.

Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management's EMBA program is second at $180,000, followed by Columbia's program at $175,200. The only solace for these MBAers is that employers will often pick up all, or part, of the tab for an executive MBA degree.